1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a transmission, and more particularly to a continuous automatic transmission constructed in such a way that when changing speed or when desiring reverse operation, power input to an input shaft can be converted and output to an output shaft to provide forward or reverse operation without changing or disengaging gears necessary for attaining such operation.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
Generally, a transmission changes speed by manual selection of a predetermined gear ratio. Careful attention is necessary since the gears must be shifted (changed or disengaged) when changing speed. Existing automatic transmissions are complicated and require a large space for installation. Also present day automatic transmissions are expensive to produce.
To solve the above described problems U.S. Pat. No. 5,062,823 entitled: Continuously Variable Transmission with Controlling Brakes, issued on Nov. 5, 1991. However, the transmission described in the above patent document requires a separate means for attaining reverse operation, i.e. backward motion.
U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 07/903,137 filed Jun. 23, 1992; 07/921,050 filed Jul. 28, 1992; and 07/920,892 filed Jul. 28, 1992 teach a transmission which includes reverse operation of the output shaft.
The present invention vastly improves upon the construction of the transmissions described in the above applications. That is, an output shaft is integrally formed with a carrier in the above applications; whereas, the output shaft is provided with an output sun gear in the present invention.
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a continuous automatic transmission which can solve all of the above problems, which can rapidly respond to a change in the load without using a clutch or complicated mechanisms, which can smoothly transmit rotational force to an output shaft, which facilitates smooth reverse driving, and which is of a simple construction.
The preceding objects should be construed as merely presenting the more pertinent features and applications of the invention. Many other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to both the summary of the invention and the detailed description, below, which describe the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.